This collection is the manifestation of self, which emerges out of the articulated lines and layers of introspection and instinct. Each piece begins intuitively, with a slow and rhythmic application of penciled line or brush of colour, thus initiating the conversation within. And in this space, I confront the existential questions that we individually and collectively face: who, what, why am I? And, who, what, why are we? During my metaphysical musing, strokes and brushes are added or subtracted – each line and layer, informed by the previous one and influencing the next – until the image finds its form. Rising to the surface, the portrait of a female, with her wistful countenance, is born. And although the she who appears is not Me, I exist inside of her – perplexed by the unanswered questions on what it means to be.